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Daigo Game

Design for the real audience behind the wishlists

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Once upon a time

Overview

Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game was a passion project with unique visuals and battle systems, but it underperformed at launch with our target audience. I analyzed the problem and proposed a low risk, fast to build game aimed at our unexpected existing audience instead of chasing a niche demographic

One day

The Problem

​​Wishlist ≠ Revenue: 

​​Poor conversion between wishlist and sales. 

​

​Demo design flaw:

A 20-minute demo did not draw players at conventions

​​Brand confusion:

​The name and marketing didn’t stand out. “Cricket” was unsearchable.

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Something fast, low-budget, and capable of turning passive fans into paying players.

​​Studio needed a win:

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According to social media insights, women in their 20s - 30s are our top viewers, not our original target demographic

We were not reaching our intended audience, but we were reaching someone.

The opportunity was clear:

​

Build for them

And because of that

Hypothesis 

There is a genre and art style mismatch which is confusing the audience 

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  • Women in their 20s - 30s might be drawn to the art but not the genre

  • Our target audience might see our art and not understand the game was made for them

Insights & Market Trends

I was aware there was an uptick in cozy games and female gaming influences in the recent years.

46% of gamers are female, up nearly 10% over the past decade and the average age of female gamers is 32.​

Entertainment Weekly

Iona, 30, is a full-time gaming video creator who shares cosy game reviews to her online audience. Out of her 136,000 YouTube subscribers, 75% are listed as female

Cosmopolitan

There is an increasing popularity of cozy, low-stress titles, with Google searches for “cozy games” reaching an all-time high in 2024​

My journal courier

As the gaming industry expanded to include more low-pressure experiences, the percentage of women identifying as gamers rose over the past decade.

Market Analysis

Our visuals were already connecting,

we just needed a game built for this audience.

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These games are accessible, visually memorable, and light on mechanics while rich in emotion, humor or charm.​

Competitive Analysis

I also did a competitive analysis between our game and the game next to us that gathered a lot of attention during PAX.

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​​Extremely Powerful Capybaras nailed marketing

Used high reward merchandise and quick demo. They gained a lot of attention during PAX.​

​However

they lacked long term player satisfaction, polish and post launch support.

Cricket: Jae’s Really Peculiar Game struggled to attract players

many did not finish the demo.

the developers put a lot of care into player satisfaction and just struggled to properly market the product.

However

Goal 

Create a quick-to-play, visually appealing, and easily marketable game that aligns with our audience who are already engaging with the studio.

And because of that

Ideation

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Reasons

​​Build a fast, marketable experience while using studio's strengths

Daigo Snake Game

  • Play as hand (snake) trying to pet Daigo (shiba inu)

  • Simple hide-and-dodge mechanic using furniture and dog toys.

  • Matches existing studio aesthetic and humor.

Timeline Estimate: 4-5 months

  • Save time on character design

  • Easy animation with simple assets

  • Use existing game engine

Polish, bug-free, strong animation, and audience engagement

​Use the studio mascot

No need to design new characters

​​Evokes humor and relatability

Shibas avoiding pets is a universal internet truth

​​Unique name

"Daigo" returns clean in Steam search

​Instant merch appeal

Stickers, plush, shirts are low cost marketing.

​​Built for convention demo

5-10 minutes to test game

​​Art style consistency with studio's existing work

Appealing visual continuity

Until Finally

First Prototype

We tested with four players 2 male, 2 female aged 29-35

​"You have something here"

  • All players played through the entire 9 levels, each took about 5-10mins. 

  • All players found the core mechanic satisfying.

  • Some players felt controls felt chunky. 

  • Some players wanted more humor. 

  • Both female players expressed they would pay for this game.

You can’t force an audience, but you can listen and pivot

Constraints

  • The initial prototype was tested with a broader, non-target demographic

  • Time and budget

  • Split attention: with multiple projects we couldn't fully commit all our attention to this game.

  • Studio closure resulted in halting this project.

What I'd Improve

  • I would have liked to test with the target demographic.

  •  Would have liked to see this through, continue to test and improve with user feedback. 

  • I would have liked to market the game, see how much traction we can gain as we built the game.

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